Long-term male-specific chronic pain via telomere- and p53-mediated spinal cord cellular senescence

publishedVersio

Structural Barriers to Green and Blue Spaces: A Scoping Review Protocol

Emerging evidence has demonstrated that nature-based interventions (NBIs) can improve mental and physical health. Considering that the global burden of poor mental health continues to rise, such interventions could be a cost-effective means to improve mental health, as well as serve to reconnect individuals with the natural world, thereby aiding conservation efforts. However, the effectiveness of NBIs as a prescriptive intervention is a function of access to blue and green spaces, as well as many other structural determinants. Accordingly, this scoping review will explore how structural inequalities influence the effectiveness of nature-based interventions as treatment options for mental ill health. A scoping review will be conducted to identify the barriers and facilitators associated with the utilisation of green and blue spaces. The review will follow the PRISMA-ScR guidelines, in addition to the associated Cochrane guidelines for scoping reviews. A literature search will be performed across six databases, and articles will be selected based on key inclusion/ exclusion criteria. All data will be extracted to a pre-defined charting table, and the primary outcomes will be physical and mental health. This review will better inform relevant stakeholders of the potential enablers and barriers of nature-based interventions, and thereby improve provision and implementation of NBIs as public health initiatives

Enabling Health Outcomes of Nature-based Interventions: A Systematic Scoping Review

AbstractBackgroundThe burden of poor mental health and non-communicable disease is increasing, and some practitioners are turning to nature to provide the solution. Nature-based interventions could offer cost-effective solutions that benefit both human health and the environment by reconnecting individuals with nature. Importantly, the relative success of these interventions depends upon the accessibility of green and blue spaces, and the way in which people engage with them.Aims and ObjectivesA scoping review was conducted to establish the evidence base for nature-based interventions as a treatment for poor mental and physical health, and to assess whether and how enablers influence engagement with natural outdoor environments.MethodsThis scoping review followed the PRISMA-ScR and the associated Cochrane guidelines for scoping reviews. A literature search was performed across five databases and the grey literature, and articles were selected based on key inclusion and exclusion criteria. Exposure was the active engagement with natural environments. The primary outcome was mental health and the secondary outcome was physical health, both defined using established metrics. All data was extracted to a charting table and reported as a narrative synthesis.ResultsThe final analysis included thirty-nine studies. Most of these focused on green spaces, with only five dedicated to blue spaces. Six nature-based health intervention types were identified: (i) educational interventions, (ii) physical activity in nature, (iii) wilderness therapy, (iv) leisure activities, (v) gardening and (vi) changes to the built environment. Of the 39 studies, 92.2% demonstrated consistent improvements across health outcomes when individuals engaged with natural outdoor environments (NOEs). Furthermore, of 153 enablers that were found to influence engagement, 78% facilitated engagement while 22% reduced engagement. Aspects such as the sense of wilderness, accessibility, opportunities for physical activity and the absence of noise/ air pollution all increased engagement.ConclusionFurther research is still needed to establish the magnitude and relative effect of nature- based interventions, as well as to quantify the compounding effect of enablers on mental and physical health. This must be accompanied by a global improvement in study design. Nevertheless, this review has documented the increasing body of heterogeneous evidence in support of NBIs as effective tools to improve mental, physical, and cognitive health outcomes. Enablers that facilitate greater engagement with natural outdoor environments, such as improved biodiversity, sense of wilderness and accessibility, as well as opportunities for physical activity and an absence of pollution, will likely improve the impact of nature-based interventions and further reduce public health inequalities.</jats:sec

Structural Barriers to Green and Blue Spaces: A Scoping Review Protocol

AbstractBackgroundEmerging evidence has demonstrated that nature-based interventions (NBIs) can improve mental and physical health. Considering that the global burden of poor mental health continues to rise, such interventions could be a cost-effective means to improve mental health, as well as reconnect individuals with the natural world, and thus aid efforts. However, the effectiveness of NBIs as a prescriptive intervention is, in part, a function of access to blue and green spaces. Accordingly, this scoping review will explore how structural inequalities influence the effectiveness of nature-based interventions as treatment options for mental and physical ill health.MethodsA scoping review will be conducted to identify the barriers and facilitators associated with the utilisation of green and blue spaces. The review will follow the PRISMA-ScR guidelines, in addition to the associated Cochrane guidelines for scoping reviews. A literature search will be performed across five databases, and articles will be selected based on key inclusion/ exclusion criteria. All data will be extracted to a pre-defined charting table. The primary and secondary outcomes will be mental and physical health respectively.DiscussionThis review will better inform relevant stakeholders of the potential enablers and barriers of nature-based interventions, and thereby improve provision and implementation of NBIs as public health initiatives.Ethics and DisseminationAll data rely on secondary, publicly available data sources; therefore no ethical clearance is required.Upon completion, the results of this study will be disseminated via the Imperial College London Community and published in an open access, peer-reviewed journal.Article SummaryStrengths and Limitations of this StudyThis scoping review protocol is the first to focus on the accessibility to green and blue spaces in the context of mental and physical health.This protocol and subsequent review benefit from increased transparency, a systematised strategy (PRISMA-ScR), and a reduction in the risk of bias, through publication in an open access journal.This review will also capture grey literature - studies published outside peer-reviewed journals.Due to the broad nature of the review, the research may unearth more questions than solutions.Registration NumberOpen Science Framework: 10.17605/OSF.IO/8J5Q3</jats:sec

Olfactory exposure to late-pregnant and lactating mice causes stress-induced analgesia in male mice

In an attempt to improve reproducibility, more attention is being paid to potential sources of stress in the laboratory environment. Here, we report that the mere proximity of pregnant or lactating female mice causes olfactory-mediated stress-induced analgesia, to a variety of noxious stimuli, in gonadally intact male mice. We show that exposure to volatile compounds released in the urine of pregnant and lactating female mice can themselves produce stress and associated pain inhibition. This phenomenon, a novel form of female-to-male chemosignaling, is mediated by female scent marking of urinary volatiles, such as n -pentyl-acetate, and likely signals potential maternal aggression aimed at defending against infanticide by stranger males. </jats:p